Interns
by drummergurll
Summary: Job shadowing gone wrong....COMPLETE....sorry for the delay, I got grounded again.
1. Introductions

disclaimer: All I own is a cat, i don't even own this computer, so sue me if you want but i don't own CSI.

* * *

It was my brilliant idea to try for an internship at the Las Vegas Crime Lab. Ok, so it was Brooke's idea, but I did get the applications. All right I can't lie, I made Lucy print them off on my computer. I wasn't very surprised when two months later I discovered that I had received the internship. After all, I am a science geek even if I don't exactly act or look like one. Brooke's probably the second-smartest person I know, besides me, so it wasn't a huge shocker when she got the second slot. However, Lucy getting the third slot was a real bombshell. She has spent most of her college experience chasing after guys and skipping classes; oh yeah, and running a huge tab at the local Starbucks. It must have been her essay that won her the internship. It was titled, "I have the Drive Because I Chase After Guys." Ok, maybe that wasn't the reason, but at any rate, Brooke, Lucy and I were going to have a blast spending the summer in Vegas.

* * *

The three of us sat in Gil Grissom's office waiting for him to assign us a CSI to shadow. His office was kind of cool, except for the pig in a jar. That was really freaky.

"Brooke, I'm assigning you to Greg Sanders. Lucy, you're with Catherine Willows, and Caleigh, you'll be shadowing Sara Sidle." Grissom led us into the break room where the night shift was waiting for their new assignments. "Ok, tonight's pretty slow. Nick, Warrick, you're with me. We've got a home invasion in Henderson. The rest of you, finish up any paperwork and then go over some cold cases." With that, Grissom, Warrick and Nick left, giving way to a few awkward moments before Catherine spoke up.

"Which one of you is Lucy Portsman?" Lucy raised her hand like an idiot, "All right, let's go." Catherine led Lucy out of the room while Brooke and I exchanged nervous glances.

Greg looked down at a slip of paper he was holding before saying, "Brooke Taylor, come on down, you're the next contestant on the Price is Right." Great, Brooke got the cool guy to hang with.

After Greg and Brooke left the room, I realized I was alone with the woman who I had been hoping wasn't Sara Sidle. But then again, she didn't look too pleased to have to be followed around by someone wearing a S.T.A.R.S. t-shirt that had Students Today Aren't Ready for Sex written in big letters. It was then that I realized what a complete moron I was to wear that shirt the first day of my internship, or any day for that matter.

"You're Caleigh Kirkland?" The way she said it I could tell she had me pegged as a troublemaker.

"Only if you're Sara Sidle," came my smart-aleck reply. Sara gave me a look that could kill. I had just ruined my chance of getting on her good side.


	2. Settling In

Disclaimer: I don't own blah blah blah

Author's Note: Thanks to my mom the super english teacher for editing...

* * *

Our first night as interns was extremely boring. Well at least for me. Catherine and Greg showed Lucy and Brooke around the lab and let them look at their kits. The whole time this was going on, I had the (dis)pleasure of watching Sara finish up paperwork. There were several occasions when I'd try to start up a conversation, but most of the time it went like this:

"How long have you been working here?"

Silence.

"Where'd you go to college?"

More silence.

"How's your mom?"

"You know, I don't really want to talk about this," and with that cold response, the conversation would end.

* * *

I'm pretty sure the biggest shock of the night came when it was time to go home. Grissom called Lucy, Brooke, one Miss Sidle and myself into his office.

"How was your first day at the lab?" he asked us. It was then that my smart-aleckness kicked in.

"It was awesome, Sara and I really bonded." Sara looked like she wanted to smack me.

"I'm glad to hear that," Grissom replied before turning to Sara. "Sara, I was wondering if you'd like to drive these three to their apartment."

"What?" Came Sara's shocked reply.  
"The crime lab has rented them an apartment in your complex." He stated steadily. "It would only make sense for you to carpool them. Don't worry, Sara, the lab will pay for the gas." I think that Sara realized how futile it was to argue with him.

"Fine, Grissom. Where's the luggage?" she asked.

"It's already been taken there."

"Where exactly is there?"

"Apartment 214." He replied.

"But that's the apartment next to mine!"

"What!" came my astonished retort. It was bad enough that I had to spend my shift with her everyday, let alone be her neighbor.

Lucy broke up the awkward moment with a more awkward one, "Slumber party at Sara's!"

"Lucy, I don't think that's going to happen," stated Brooke.

"That's right." I could tell that Sara was glad that there would be no parties at her place. "I'm going to go get my things out of my locker. Why don't you three wait in the break room for me?" With that, Sara turned on her heel and left.

Grissom apologized for her attitude, said something about her having to work doubles, and handed Brooke the key to the apartment.

* * *

Ten minutes later the four of us headed out to Sara's car. I let Lucy and Brooke fight over who got shotgun and climbed in back. Sara seemed relieved that I had done so, and after a quick game of rock-paper-scissors, Lucy climbed in back with me. The ride to the apartment complex was uneventful. Once there, Sara showed us where our new home was and went inside her apartment. We followed her example and went inside ours. I must say, it was a pretty nice set up. The living room had been furnished with a couch, a chair, a coffee table and a TV/VCR combo.All our things were piled up on the floor near the kitchen, which had a stocked fridge. Lucy searched for plates and silverware, I looked for a pan and Brooke put all things necessary for scrambled eggs on the counter.

After finishing breakfast, or was it dinner, anyway, after finishing our meal we fought over who got which room. Brooke won the master, Lucy the room closest to the bathroom, and I got the one that shared a wall with Sara's apartment. Lucky me. It seemed I would never get rid of being close to her.


	3. A View of Murder

a/n: sorry it took so long for an update, my family was monopolizing the computer.

* * *

Sara and I drove in silence as we headed toward our assigned crime scene -- a homicide in a parking garage off the strip. My job in this would be very simple, carry Sara's kit, and listen to her explain stuff about the scene. Oh joy! I was going to be stuck in a parking garage for "x" amount of hours with my least-favorite person in the world. I decided to see if she had a good c.d. in her c.d. player. Bad idea…

"_One way or another I'm gonna find ya, I'm gonna getcha getcha getcha getcha, One way or another I'm gonna win ya, I'm gon—"_

Quickly, I hit the power button. "You like Blondie, Sara?" I asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"I didn't have you pegged as a Blondie fan, that's all."

"Well what did you have me pegged as?" she asked with irritation.

"Not a fan of eighties music, that's for sure. I was thinking maybe some 'NSYNC, a little Backstreet Boys," I countered.

"Backstreet who?"

"Come on Sara! What? Do you live under a rock? You know 'that's makes you larger that life,'" I retorted.

"What makes me larger than life?" she innocently replied.

"You've got to be kidding me! That must be a huge rock you live under Sara. You know nothing about 90's pop culture. Tell me, you must know a little about stuff going on today," I replied.

"I do. There's a war, there's a threat of war and then there's people killing other people for kicks."

That was a real conversation killer. I just shut up and we rode in silence the rest of the way.

* * *

The first thing I saw when we arrived on the scene was blood. Lots of blood. Sara seemed surprised that it didn't affect me much, but underneath my cool cover I wanted to spew. Nothing I had ever seen on TV could have prepared me for the sight of a woman lying dead with a gunshot to the back of her head.

"Caleigh, get my kit from the back of the car," Sara commanded.

I gladly obeyed. By the time I returned with the kit she had finished asking the officer at the scene some questions. She then proceeded to start snapping pictures of the gruesome scene.

"Hey, Sara, does that look like a bloody footprint to you?" I pointed to a spot near the victim's head.

"Yeah, it does. Good eyes Caleigh. You seem like you'd make an okay CSI, so tell me what you think went down," Sara replied, offering me an opportunity I couldn't pass on.

I meticulously looked at the scene in front of me before I answered, "I think that she was either getting in or out of her car. See how the door's not shut all the way?" Sara nodded silently, but I could tell that she was impressed I noticed this. "She has some bruising on her face, which would imply a fight, maybe. I'm guessing her attacker came up to her and started hitting her, a lover's quarrel maybe, and when it got to be too much, she was shot."

"That sounds reasonable, but remember, we have to gather more evidence before we can back up your theory."

I smiled. It sounded like Miss Sidle could be civilized once in a while.

* * *

I was glad to be heading back to the apartment after a tough night. Catherine gave Lucy, Brooke and me a lift, since Sara was pulling extra hours on her new case. The three of them were chatting it up while I stared out the window. The same thought kept going through my head, _maybe I had Sara all wrong; maybe she's not that bad of a person._ All I knew was that the crime scene had shown me a whole new side to Sara Sidle. 


	4. Invaded Dreams

a/n: sorry, this chapter's short, even for me...

* * *

I was looking forward to working the next night. I was convinced that Sara and I could and would get along. I was wrong.

"I can't stand that woman!" I screamed in the safety of the apartment. I wasn't worried about Sara hearing me, she was working overtime again. "I can't even stand her name. Sara Sidle, it sounds like suicidal, which is what she makes people!" With that I went into my room and slammed the door, leaving Brooke and Lucy staring after me.

* * *

_The wind blew the cold rain in my face as my brother, Luke, carried me onto the beach. He looked around until he found a place where the driftwood created a windbreak before he sat me down._

"_Stay here, Rockstar, I have to get my board outta the truck." I felt myself nodding as he started walking back to the empty parking lot. I waited till Luke was out of sight before I scrambled after him. When I reached the parking lot, two guys were pushing my brother, then I heard a loud noise, and saw blood… blood coming from my brother's chest. Too much blood… Blood, blood, blood._

I sat up in my bed breathing heavy. I had to get out of that room, away from everything. I slipped into shorts and a t-shirt, left a note for Brooke and Lucy, and went for a run. I had just cleared the parking lot of the apartment complex when I heard someone's footsteps behind me. I turned around to see who it was and immediately wished I hadn't.

"Hi Sara." I said trying to sound cheery.

"Hi," she replied before accelerating past me.

* * *

Night number four was spent going to a double homicide at the MGM Grand and running the results back and fourth between Trace, the DNA lab and Sara. We spoke maybe seven words the entire night. I still couldn't believe my bad luck, getting paired with her. My dream summer in Vegas was turning out to be a nightmare. 


	5. Eggshells and SUVs

a/n: sorry it took so long to update. i had an anatomy, math, and history final followed by the SATs.

* * *

A month into the internship and things continued going downhill. And if that wasn't bad enough, it took a turn for the worse when I discovered a note on the door of our apartment: 

'Caleigh, we need to talk. Sara.'

Immediately, I knew that she wanted to discuss the events of the day before when her car had been egged while she slept. Naturally, she would blame it on her mortal enemy, me, but in actuality I had nothing to do with it. I had even been nice and offered to help her clean it up. Sara's response was, "You could have saved yourself the trouble and not have egged it in the first place."

I wanted to take her down right then and there, but in all the time I had spent with her I had learned the value of self-control.

I checked the time on my watch and smiled with satisfaction. Sara had worked a double. She would now be in her bed sleeping. I suppressed an evil laugh before walking the two steps to her apartment. If Miss Sidle wanted to talk, then by golly we would talk.

"Sara! Sara, I'm ready to talk now! Sara!" I yelled, while banging on her door as loud as humanly possible. "Sare Bear! Come on, you said you wanted to talk! Saraaaaaaa!" When it was evident that she wasn't going to answer the door, I turned away and went to my room. I wasn't satisfied yet.

It was unlucky that Brooke and Lucy weren't there to stop me from what I did next. My aunt had sent me money to buy a stereo, since she was convinced that I couldn't live without one. It was this stereo that I used to torture the sleeping Sara Sidle. I pushed the speakers against the wall I shared with her bedroom and turned it on almost full blast.

_So you think you can see inside my mind_

_You probably could if you just took a little time_

_I know exactly what you're trying to say_

_Sitting in the stands ain't the same_

_As playing the game_

_So I can't comprehend in my mind _

_Just why we can't leave it all behind_

By this time I started to hear banging on the wall. It just fuelled my desire for childish revenge even more.

_You can't bring me down_

_Do you hear what I'm trying to say_

_You can't bring me down _

_I'll never turn the other way_

_You can't bring me down_

_What is it you're trying to say_

_You can't bring me down_

_It's not like I'm running away _

* * *

I spent the whole night at the lab trying to avoid being alone with Sara. I guess it was pretty obvious too, what with a hundred bathroom breaks and all, but I didn't care. The tired look on her face let me know that my stupid plan had succeeded. Oddly enough, I didn't have the same satisfaction that I had earlier. I felt kind of bad. That feeling wore off pretty quickly, though. 

"Kirkland, we're going to a robbery. Hurry up!" called Sara.

I fearfully followed her, convinced that real soon CSI would be investigating the murder of an internship gone wrong.


	6. Secrets of the Past: Sara's POV

a/n: i didn't really want to switch pov but the way the story is going i figured sara needed to get her thoughts about caleigh. btw the song caleigh played in the last chapter is pillar's "you can't bring me down"

* * *

Thanks to Caleigh I was so tired that I could barely focus on dusting for prints at the Quick Mart where a robbery had occurred. I made a mental note to myself to talk to Grissom when I got back to the lab and try to get rid of her.

"Sara, are you sure this place has been cleared?" the sound of Caleigh's voice was so annoying.

"Why, are you scared or something?"

"No, it's just that I think there's someone in the supply closet." I didn't know whether to believe her or not but I unholstered my gun anyway.

"Move back, Kirkland. If you're not lying then we might be having some problems very quickly. Go get the officer outside." With that I sent Caleigh on her way, praying that she wasn't trying to make a fool of me. That was the last thing I needed right now.

Caleigh came back with Brass, who had just showed up, and another officer I hadn't met before. The two of them went toward the supply closet while Caleigh and I hung back waiting to see what would happen. Brass threw open the door.

"Las Vegas police, get your hands up." He grabbed the man hiding in the closet by the back of the shirt and hauled him to the ground.

"I think this is our guy. He fits the description." Brass said before taking the man outside. Caleigh looked at me like she was expecting something. Well, if she was waiting for a thank you she wasn't going to get it. I was still ticked off about my car and not being able to sleep.

* * *

I sent the girls home with Catherine, I had to have a talk with Grissom. I found him in his office getting ready to leave.

"Grissom we need to talk."

"Let me guess, you're having problems with Caleigh." I was a little shocked it was that obvious.

"Grissom have her shadow someone else, Nick, Warrick, you, I don't care. I can't handle it anymore."

He looked me over for a few seconds before responding. "Sara, I'm not going to reassign her."

"Why not."

"Because I have my reasons for assigning her to you in the first place."

"What reasons!" I was starting to get angry.

"Sara, this is the end of this discussion. Go home and get some sleep, you look tired." That was the final straw.

"Grissom if you don't tell me why you assigned her to me, I swear I'll go ballistic!"

"You already are." He paused for a second before grabbing a file that was sitting on his bookshelf. "If you really want to know, here's her application. Go home, read it and return it to me without her finding out you have it. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going home."

* * *

The second I got into my apartment I settled down on the couch and started reading Caleigh's application. The first page was pretty basic, name, age, grades, that sort of thing. Then I hit upon the essay she had written. It was in response to, 'Why do you want to become a crime scene investigator?'

_When I was young, I had the same dreams as most other kids. I wanted to be a veterinarian or an astronaut, or even the president of the United States. All this changed very suddenly, though. When I was six, my brother, Luke, took me to the beach so I could watch him surf. He told me to wait for him by some driftwood while he got his surfboard out of the truck. I followed after him only to watch him get shot by two thugs who wanted his board. His death ripped my family apart, but the worse thing about it was that we never found out who killed him. My parents were convinced I knew, but I didn't. It got to the point where they couldn't stand to look at me. They started to blame me for the fact that the guys who killed Luke were never caught. Every morning when I would wake up the first thing I would hear was my dad commanding me to tell him who had killed my brother. This went on for years until social services finally took me away, saying that my parents weren't stable enough to care for me. _

_My decision to become a crime scene investigator has come about because one thing -- my need for closure. In my opinion, closure is the best thing you can offer a person in the wake of a tragedy. My family might not have been able to get it, but maybe I can give closure to someone else who needs it just as much as we did._

I put down the essay astonished. I finally understood why Grissom assigned Caleigh to me. We had so much in common, it was scary.


	7. Choosing Sides

a/n: sorry if this chapter sucks, i wrote it at 1:00 in the morning.

* * *

"I mean come on, the least she could have done was to say thanks. I might have saved her life!" I was fuming about what had happened at the crime scene earlier that night.

"You are so overreacting, Caleigh, the guy didn't even have a gun. He was scared. He hid in a supply closet. How dangerous could he be?" Lucy seemed overly annoyed with me. Luckily, Brooke was on my side.

"Cut her some slack, Lucy. She didn't know that the guy was unarmed at the time. She could have just ignored the fact that there was a suspicious person in the supply closet and left him for Sara to find," Brooke argued.

"Brooke, the only reason you're siding with Caleigh is because you're mad at me. Usually you would be right with me, making sure that Caleigh gets some sense talked into her. Now you're unnecessarily fueling the flames just to spite me," retorted Lucy.

"I have to live with her, too, Luce! I'm not siding with her just because I'm mad at you. For once, Caleigh seems to have a good point. I'm allowed to hold a different opinion than you!" Brooke said.

I could tell that the conversation was starting to shift. Not that I cared, I was curious to find out why Brooke was mad at Lucy. It was a first.

"The only reason you have a different opinion than me is because you're mad that Greg likes me!" Lucy yelled.

"So, what if that is the reason! It's a pretty darn good one if you ask me. I mean seriously, Lucy, I'm the one shadowing him, not you. You're the one who gets all the guys back home. Now, when I finally have a chance, you go and steal him right from under me!" Brooke replied.

"I didn't steal him! He was the one who asked if I wanted to catch a movie; he was the one who asked me out for coffee, and there's nothing you can do about it, Brooke Taylor!" With that Brooke and Lucy went to their respective rooms, leaving me standing in the living room wondering how I could make it through the summer with roommates who hated each other.

I dozed off on the couch until Lucy came out of her room. She was dressed pretty nice, but still managed to keep the casual look about her. She glanced at herself in the mirror and nervously played with her hair, leading me to guess that she was getting ready to leave on the date that had caused so many problems between her and Brooke.

"Caleigh, Greg's going to pick me up in about five minutes. Could you do me a big favor and change into something else. No offense but it's would be kind of embarrassing if Greg saw you wear that." I looked down at my Star Wars boxers and shirt. I saw nothing wrong with what I was wearing, but this was the first time that I had seen Lucy anxious about a date. She was so cute that I gave in without hassle and changed into jeans and an Enoch shirt.

Brooke finally came out of her room after Greg picked up Lucy. She didn't look too pleased with me.

"Caleigh Kirkland, why did you let Lucy push you around like that?" Brooke held up her hand signaling me not to answer. "It better not be because you support Lucy going out with Greg."

"Brooke, changing my clothes because someone wants me to look presentable isn't a crime," I explained.

"Yeah, but double crossing your best friend is." With that Brooke grabbed her purse and bus pass and left, slamming the door behind her. It seemed that this summer was only getting worse.


	8. Overheard Explosions: Sara's POV

a/n: my mom flipped becuase she thought i spelled jorja wrong. it was funny.

* * *

I was extremely tired, yet I couldn't sleep. The primary shock of learning about Caleigh's past had worn off, leaving me feeling terrible. I couldn't imagine what I'd do if I found out that someone had gone behind my back to find out about my past. 

_That wasn't the reason you looked at her file_, I kept telling myself. But nothing I said was convincing enough to keep me from feeling like a slime ball. I felt I needed to redeem myself. I wanted to earn Caleigh's trust. First, I needed to find out how I could accomplish my goal. So I turned to the only reliable source I could think of, her application.

_Ok, Sidle, how would someone earn your trust?_ I asked myself as I flipped through the pages in the file folder. I found what I was looking for on the first page that contained all of Caleigh's basic information. I remembered how the first night interning she had asked me about college_. Well, if she was interested about where you went to college it might be a good topic to talk about with her._ I scanned the page looking for the name of the school she attended. Once I found it, I committed it to memory so that I could bring it up that night. Having accomplished this, my conscience was relieved of guilt and I could finally sleep.

I was worked on a cold case file while Caleigh observed, giving minimal input. I was waiting for the opportune moment to start up a conversation. Finally it arrived. "So Caleigh, do you like Jorja Fox?" She looked up from her notes to give me a strange look.

"What?" Caleigh asked.

"Do you like Jorja Fox?" I repeated

"Sara, I have no idea what you're talking about," Caleigh replied, frustrated.

"Don't you go to Jorja Fox University?" I asked.

"It's George Fox University, not Jorja Fox," Caleigh replied.

"Oh." I decided that that was enough of a conversation for the night and apparently Caleigh agreed with me, because we didn't talk to each other for the rest of the shift.

* * *

Brooke and Caleigh were the only ones who rode home with me. Lucy went somewhere with Greg. I wasn't very surprised since there were various rumors going around that they were seeing each other. I just wasn't sure if it was best for Greg to be dating an intern. 

Once I was home I fixed some food and idly messed with my computer. I was just about to go to sleep when I heard shouting coming from the girls' apartment.

"What you think is not important, Caleigh!" Brooke yelled.

"That's obviously not true. You seem to think that my opinion is extremely important when it's the same as yours!" Caleigh said.

"That's because my opinion is the only one that matters!" stubbornly replied Brooke.

"Shut up, Brooke, your voice is annoying me!" Caleigh said.

"You want to know the real reason why I think your opinion is not important, Caleigh? It's because you're a no-good orphan! Your parents didn't care about you, heck they care more about your dead brother than you! How long has it been since their last letter? Three, no, four years, and to top it off you spent six years of your life with people who didn't care for you. Six years, Caleigh. Then you found the perfect place, didn't you. Finally, you found someone who cared," Brooke cruelly spoke.

"Shut up, Brooke!" Caleigh was now very upset.

Brooke snidely continued, "If the Thompsons hadn't taken you in, where would you be? Face it, Kirkland, they're your crutch. If they were taken out of the equation, then you'd be nowhere, nobody. And do you think that calling them your aunt and uncle helps? They aren't your family. Your family doesn't care. They live less than four hours away from where you go to college and yet they don't visit. They don't even love you enough to write you."

"If you don't shut up I swear I'll-"

"You'll what? Have your dead brother haunt me? I'm too old to believe in fairy tales. You're too old to make them up. But that's what you're doing -- living in a fantasy. Just remember this, Caleigh Kirkland, fairy tales aren't true." Brooke finished.

I heard the door of their apartment slam. I peaked out of my door to see Caleigh running past. Quickly, I grabbed my keys and followed after her, still in shock from what I had overheard.


	9. Saving Caleigh: Sara's POV

a/n: contains minor spoilers for nesting dolls, you've been warned.

* * *

I caught up with Caleigh in the parking lot of the complex. She looked like she was about to burst into tears.

"Caleigh," I called out.

She turned around abruptly. "You heard the whole thing, didn't you?"

"Come on, let's go for a ride," I offered. She nodded and the two of us hopped in my SUV. We rode in silence for a few minutes before she finally spoke up.

"Don't you hate it when people stab you in the back?" She said starting to let tears fall down her face.

"I think what Brooke was doing back there was stabbing you in the face," I reassured her that I was on her side.

"Yeah, and then she turned the knife. Some friend," Caleigh responded. The tears were starting to flow freely now. "You probably think I'm some kind of freak."

"Why would I think that?" I asked her.

"Because, I was in foster care," she replied.

The way she said it I could tell she was a little bitter. "You're not a freak just because you were in foster care," I said, trying to reassure her.

"Like you would know," came her smart reply.

"Actually, I probably understand you more than any of your friends," as I spoke, Caleigh turned from the window to look at me.

"How could you understand?" she asked.

"I've been in the system. I know what it's like." I glanced over at her as the information I relayed started to sink in. "Look, I read the essay you wrote in your application. I know what it's like. You lost your brother to thugs, and my mother killed my father. I know what it's like to be around people who don't care. I know what it's like to wake up crying because your memories of the event haunt you." I was crying by now.

"Where are we going?" It was obvious that she didn't know what to say. I mean, how could she respond to what I had just told her.

"Where do you want to go?" I asked her.

"Home," she replied, causing me to cry even harder.

"No, you're not going to let Brooke beat you." It was a command that she realized I would make her follow no matter what.

"How can I live with her?" she sincerely asked.

"You're not going to. I'm not going to let you put yourself in that situation."

"Then where am I supposed to live?" Caleigh asked.

"With me." Caleigh looked at me, shocked. "I have a spare bedroom in my place, we'll wait until Brooke leaves, then you can grab your stuff."

"Are you sure you can handle living with me?" she asked, concerned.

"I believe the question is can you handle living with Brooke?" I asked her.


	10. Satisfaction in Friendships

a/n: another chapter from a sleep deprived mind.

* * *

"Are you sure you can handle living with me?" Caleigh asked, still unsure about the living situation.

"I believe the question is can you handle living with Brooke?" As soon as she said it, I realized I had no choice. I couldn't let Brooke beat me, but I was hesitant about moving in with Sara. And I was still trying to process what she had said about her mother killing her father.

"Ok, Sara. I'll do it. I'll show Brooke that I'm not a no-good orphan. I'll show her that I can make something of myself." With those passionate words, I signed a verbal contract to live with Sara for the rest of the summer. I only prayed that I would have no regrets.

* * *

That night Sara and I had the night off. After Catherine picked up Lucy and Brooke, Sara and I went into the apartment that had been mine. Sara helped me pack up my few belongings, and when she spied my stereo she gave me a mock stern look.

"I'll have you know, Miss Kirkland, that there'll be no playing loud music while I'm trying to sleep anymore." We both tried to keep straight faces but ending up laughing. It was amazing. Spending the entire afternoon with her had helped us both. We were now pretty much comfortable with each other, though we hadn't touched upon the topic of our pasts anymore. Instead we tried to get to know each other, silently understanding what the other had gone through, and appreciating that we could talk to someone who understood what it was like to have their world turned upside down.

By the time we went to retrieve my things, we had talked about everything from college to past crushes. I wished that I could have met this Sara the first night, because if I had the whole summer would have gone a lot smoother. But I was satisfied with finding a new friend in her right now, because that's what I needed the most.


	11. Familiar Situations: Caleigh's POV

disclaimer: don't own Hawk Nelson or any of their songs, and unfortunatly, never will.

a/n: didn't plan on the story taking this direction, but hey, what can i say, my fingers have a mind of their own. oh yeah, this is caleigh's pov.

* * *

The next night was tense at the lab. Lucy kept badgering me to tell her what had happened while she was gone, and when she wasn't, I was preoccupied with avoiding Brooke like the plague. Sara noticed how stressed I was.

"You really need to calm down, Caleigh," she said.

"I can't. I'm so scared that Brooke is going to say or do something to me," I replied.

"Try singing a song," she suggested.

I looked at Sara for a second just to make sure I had heard correctly, "Sing a song?"

"It helps me." Sara replied.

"Ok, umm, this is awkward. Let's see. I took a walk down a country road, I know, this might sound dumb maybe but I was all alone." I glanced over at Sara to see if she approved, it seemed like she did so I kept going. "If you think that I'm going somewhere, take my hand I'll lead you there, don't want to have to call you up from a pay phone."

* * *

Lucy came up to me, more like cornered me, in the break room. She looked like she wanted answers that I didn't want to give.

"So," she started smoothly, "anything interesting happen while I was gone, yesterday?"

"Nothing much. You have fun on your date?" She could tell I was trying to talk around it.

"Caleigh, we've known each other for two years, I'm one of your best friends, I know when something's wrong. So tell me what happened between you and Brooke." It was a point blank question. I was deciding weather I should keep stalling or not when Brooke came in. She glared at Lucy before turning to me.

"Listen, about yesterday," she said trailing off waiting for me to say it was no big deal. I don't know how she could have expected me to shrug it off like it was nothing. It was then that Sara came to my rescue.

"Caleigh, homicide in Henderson. Let's go." I gladly followed Sara out of the break room and away from Brooke and Lucy.

* * *

"So, what was going on in the break room?" Sara asked me once we reached the Denali.

"Lucy wanted answers, Brooke wanted forgiveness. I didn't want to give either," I replied as Sara's cell rang.

"Sidle. Why don't you just drive over on your own, we'll meet you there. No reason. I won't start without you, you don't have to worry about that. Bye." Sara closed her phone. "Cath's going to be working on this case, too. She and Lucy will meet us there."

"Great, Lucy's going to badger me the whole time." I sighed.

"Just stick close to me. If it seems like she's pushing to hard I'll send you or her to grab something, okay," Sara assured me.

"Okay," I replied, gladly accepting the offer.

* * *

Catherine had Sara work the upstairs while she and Lucy worked on the main level. It worked out great for me because Lucy had no reason to come upstairs. After a while, Catherine and Lucy went back to the lab to get some samples tested while Sara and I finished processing upstairs.

"Did the attic get cleared?" I asked.

"What attic?" I pointed to a place on the ceiling where a string was hanging down. "One of the ones that you pull down the stairs." She stated. "Wait a second. There's blood on the string." She carefully took a sample before tugging on it.

"What are you doing?" I asked, panicking.

"Well if there's blood on the string that leads to the attic, I'm betting that there is evidence in the attic." I knocked her hand aside.

"What if it wasn't cleared?" I asked anxiously.

"Of course it's cleared," Sara remarked.

"What about the Quick-Mart, remember that?" I asked.

"Yeah, well I'm betting that's not going to happen to me twice in the same week," she said tugging on the string to get the flight of steps to come down. She checked to make sure there was no blood on the steps before continuing up.

"Hey, Caleigh, can you bring my kit up here?"

"Do I have a choice?" I asked.

"Not really. The kit." I climbed the stairs with her kit. Sara's flashlight was the only source of illumination.

"Aren't you going to turn on the light?"

"I tried, it's burned out." Just then I felt someone breathing on my neck.

"Hey, Sara, I know we're on good terms and everything, but you're a little to close for comfort."  
"What are you talking about?" She asked, confused.

"You mean, you're not standing behind me?"

"No."

"Then who is?" I almost screamed. Sara turned her flashlight towards me. I turned my head to see who was behind me, and this time I screamed without hesitation.


	12. Ideas of a College Student: Sara's POV

I shined my light on Caleigh only to catch a glimpse of a tall man behind her. She screamed. Quickly, I grabbed for my gun only to discover it wasn't in the holster.

"Looking for this?" came a deep voice behind me. I turned around, and discovered another man. I saw something flying at my head out of the corner of my eye. Everything went black.

* * *

I opened my eyes to darkness. My head was pounding. I tried to stand up just to stumble back against a wall.

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Ms. Sidle," said a voice cutting through the silence.

"Caleigh?" I asked, praying that it was.

"No, it's Grissom. Of course it's me," she sarcastically replied.

"Well, it's good to see you still have your famous sarcasm," I retorted. "Do you know where we are?"

"Somewhere not Vegas," she stated.

"How can you tell?" I inquired.

"Well, while you were catching up on some much-needed sleep, I was awake, being crushed by you, I might add. Anyway, we drove around for a long while. I'm pretty sure we passed the strip, but I can't be positive, your head was in the way."

"Hey, I'd rather be crushed by you than be knocked out," I snapped.

"Calm down, Sara, I think that concussion is making you aggressive," Caleigh declared with annoyance.

"How do you know I have a concussion?"

"From what I could hear, you were hit very hard with a breakable object," she stated.

"Breakable?" I asked, as searched for cuts on my head.

"Yeah, you should have heard whatever it was shatter!" she exclaimed as I touched a sensitive area on my forehead. "You were bleeding pretty good, too."

"I was?"

"Yeah, I got some of it on me when we were in the back of the Denali," She explained.

"The back of my Denali?" I asked, not sure whether I had heard her right.

"Yep, those creeps backed it into the alley and loaded us in the back."

"In the back of my Denali?" I asked again.

"Sara, that concussion must be really screwing with your brain. You've asked that question twice," she stated somewhat concerned.

"So, you're telling me that they loaded us in the back of my SUV?" I asked, astonished.

"Yes, Sara, in the back of your SUV. The big black one." Caleigh said slowly.

"I can't believe this. First we get kidnapped from a crime scene, and then the killers make a getaway in my car!" I exclaimed. I tried to stand again but realized that I still couldn't because my feet were tied together. I tried to untie them with my hands, but they were bound behind my back. "How could I have not noticed that I'm tied up?"

"Let's see," Caleigh started, "you've been knocked out for about three hours, you don't know where you are, but you do know that you've been kidnapped by two killers. My guess is that you were too preoccupied with the 'kidnapped by killers' thing to worry about whether you hands and feet were tied up or not."

"Are you tied up, too?" I asked her.

"Yeah, but I have an idea," she replied thoughtfully.

"Tell me this idea of yours," I requested skeptically.

"Why don't I just show you, Ms. Sidle," Caleigh said with a hint of mischief in her voice.


	13. An Eye For An Eye: Caleigh's POV

a/n: thanks for the reviews. enjoy.

* * *

Awkwardly I slid over toward the place where Sara's voice came from. I bumped into her shoe, making her jump with surprise.

"Put your hands as close to you feet as you can," I commanded.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because, those two boneheads tied us up with plastic ties." I said.

"I still don't get it," Sara replied, confused.

"Just put your hands down by your feet," I directed. Sara complied and I searched for the tie with my face.

"What are you doing!" she exclaimed as I started to chew on her bonds.

I stopped for a moment to answer her, "When you buy shoes at the store, and they're secured together by plastic ties, and you don't have any scissors, but you really want to wear them, what do you do?"

"I don't know," she responded.

"You chew on the plastic, Sara. You chew on it until it's weakened enough to break with your hands." I said.

"Now why didn't I think of that," Sara asked.

"Because, you haven't had the past three hours to think about it," I retorted, beginning to chew on her bonds again.

* * *

It felt good to be untied. I took a few seconds moving my hands around to get used to it again.

"Hey, I think I found a chair," came Sara's voice from somewhere in the darkened room.

"So," I shot back.

"So, I think that this would be the perfect thing to use for payback," she said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"An eye for an eye, Caleigh. They hit me over the head, I hit them back," Sara replied almost with glee.

"Are you serious? You are definitely more evil than I thought you were." I searched in the dark until I found Sara and the chair. "Now all we have to do is find the door, right?"

"Right." She answered. Quietly, we searched for the door. "Found it."

"Now, what?" I inquired.

"Now we wait for them to return," she answered back.

"Why don't we just escape now?" came my confused response.

"Because the door's locked," Sara explained.

"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" I wondered aloud.

"I don't know," said Sara.

* * *

After about two more hours of sitting in the dark, my legs began to cramp. I stood up to shake them out when suddenly the door behind me flew open. I hastily turned around just as the guy who had knocked Sara out attempted to grab me. Out of nowhere, a chair came flying at his head. The guy never knew what hit him.

"Ok, Caleigh, search him for my keys," Sara commanded. I complied.

"I found a gun," I replied.

"Let me see that," Sara said as she took the gun from me. "This is my gun. That son of a-"

"Sara," I interrupted, "I found your keys."

"Alright, you stay here with this guy while I go to make sure that there is no one else in this house," she directed.

"Don't you think if there was, they would have heard this guy hit the ground?" I replied, half joking.

"I'll be right back," came Sara's response.


	14. Reopened Dreams

a/n: okay, so let me apologize for taking so long to update. i got grounded. i'll try to keep my big mouth shut from now on. secondly, i have good news and bad news. good news is that i'm going to get high school credit for writing this. bad news, because of that i can't have anyone edit it. enjoy, and once again i'm sorry for telling my mom that i didn't have a chip on my shoulder.

* * *

**Sara's POV:**

I carefully walked through the house with my gun at ready until I found a phone in the living room. I picked it up, dialed 911, and sat it on the couch, letting it ring while I searched the rest of the place. No one else was there, but I did discover my Denali in the garage with my Nevada plates replaced with ones from Arizona. Sirens started to go off in the distance, so I headed back to get Caleigh.

"Police are coming, Kirkland," I said, somewhat cheerfully.

"Cool," she replied, from her perch on the back of one of our kidnappers. I looked both of them in the dim light coming from the hallway.

"What did you tie him up with?" I asked, noting that his feet and hands were both restrained.

"My shoelaces. I did it just in case he woke up while you were off on your adventure." I laughed. The sirens were now coming from the front of the house.

"Let's go meet the police," I motioned for her to follow me.

"What about this waste of space," she said pointing to the unconscious kidnapper.

"We'll let the cops handle him," I answered.

"You know," Caleigh remarked as we made our way to the front door, "we still don't know where we are."

* * *

**Caleigh's POV:**

After Warrick processed me for evidence I went to the break room. The second I entered, Lucy had me encased in the biggest bear hug ever.

"Calm down, Luce. I just survived a kidnapping, it would be embarrassing to be hugged to death now," I said, trying to hold back my laughter.

"Sorry, but I was so worried. When I heard that you and Sara were missing, I almost went berserk!" she exclaimed.

"Almost? Lucy, you were going crazy," interjected Catherine from the doorway. I couldn't help but laugh. "Where's Sara?" Cath asked.

"The hospital, they wanted to keep her overnight because of her head injury," I replied.

"Just promise me one thing, Caleigh," Lucy cut in.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Next time you and Sara decide to take off to Laughlin, bring me along." I laughed again.

"Come on girls, let's get you home," Catherine said between laughs.

"Actually, I'm going to catch a bus and head over to the hospital, if that's okay with you," I responded.

"I'll come with you," Lucy stated

"I kind of want to go over by myself. I'll call you later." With that, I left Catherine and Lucy standing in the break room.

Quietly I walked into Sara's hospital room. Her forehead had been stitched up, and she was reading a forensics journal.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" she asked me.

"I just wanted to check up on you, see if you were going crazy yet," I replied.

"You should go back to the apartment and get some sleep," Sara noted. "You have the key I gave you, right?"

"Yeah, I do, and I'll head over there in a little bit," I responded. "By the way, Brass wanted me to let you know that he chewed out the cops who were supposed to clear the scene."

"I wish I could have been there. I would have had a few choice words to say," she said, half laughing.

I stayed and visited with her for a little while before she forced me to leave to get some sleep.

On the way out of the hospital I found a payphone so I could call Lucy liked I had promised. On the third ring, someone picked up.

"Hello," came Brooke's groggy voice. I quickly hung up. Right now, Brooke was the last person I wanted to talk to.

I had been given the night off, and without someone else around, I was growing bored. Visiting hours at the hospital were over, so I couldn't see Sara. Lucy had offered to take the night off to keep me company when I had called her again, but I had refused.

"I'm fine, really. Not a scratch," I insisted.

"Well you might need someone there in case you start having the dream," Lucy shot back.

"I've already slept. I didn't have it," I lied.

"Alright, but I'm canceling my date with Greg tomorrow so that we can spend some time together," she stated.

"Don't do that. You really like him. Go on your date and have some fun," I commanded.

"You're right, I do really like him, and if he likes me than he'll understand that right now, my friend comes first," she replied softly.

Now I wished that I had let her take the night off. I was starting to fall back asleep, and fear that I would dream of the day my brother was killed hung over me like a rain cloud about to burst. I couldn't avoid sleep, and that meant that for tonight, I couldn't avoid having the dream again. Slowly I nodded off.


	15. Lucerin Blue

**Sara's POV:**

I finally was allowed to check myself out of the hospital at 9 a.m. Catherine picked me up since I wasn't allowed to drive yet, and even if I had been allowed to, my car was being processed.

Caleigh was sleeping on the couch when I walked in. The title menu for the movie 28 Days was playing on the TV. I turned it off and went into the kitchen to make breakfast. Soon the smell of coffee woke Caleigh up.

"You probably shouldn't be doing that," she said.

"Doing what?" I asked.

"Making breakfast," she replied.

"Why shouldn't I be making breakfast?" I questioned.

"Sara, hello, remember your head injury," Caleigh sighed, while knocking on her head.

"I'm fine, really, I am," I lied. Truth be told my head was killing me.

"Well at least let me help you out," she requested. Soon we were sitting at the breakfast bar, eating pancakes.

* * *

**Caleigh's POV:**

After breakfast Lucy and I caught a bus and went to the mall. We spent some time getting our pictures taken in a photo booth before going shopping. First stop, Barnes and Nobles.

"Tell me, Caleigh, why do you always get your music here?" Lucy asked.

"This is the only place that carries the music I like at an affordable price," I replied.

"Shop online," she suggested.

"Shipping and handling. They cost almost as much as the c.d." I answered. "Jackpot!" I exclaimed when I found the new John Reuben c.d.

"Sweet," she said riffling through the "L" section. "Hey, Lucerin Blue. Don't you like them?"

"Heck yes!" I half shouted as I grabbed the c.d. out of Lucy's hands.

After I had purchase both the John Reuben and Lucerin Blue c.d. we headed to the food court. I hit Panda Express while Lucy went to Subway. When we were done at there, we headed to American Eagle to get bracelets.

"Check this one out, Caleigh," Lucy said, holding up a braided hemp bracelet.

"That's pretty cool, but I think I'm going to get this one," I responded, showing her the leather one I had found. I bought the leather bracelet and Lucy bought a couple necklaces before we headed out. Once we had hit a few more stores, we decided to call it quits.

* * *

**Sara's POV:**

Grissom ticked me off within five minutes of the shift starting. He refused to let me go out into the field for a few days, using my head injury as an excuse. Caleigh and I worked on a robbery case that was still open for most of the night until Grissom came back. I cornered him in his office.

"You know, Grissom, you have no right to keep me out of the field just because I hit my head," I snapped.

"Of course I have the right to, I'm your supervisor," he replied in an even tone.

"Why are you so scared to put me back in the field? I'm not a doll, you can't break me!" I exclaimed angrily.

"You're a good CSI, I don't want you to get burnt out," he answered.

"I'm not going to." I responded, irritated.

"Sara, this conversation is over," Grissom stated with a little irritation himself.

"Fine," I retorted as I stormed out of his office. Shift was over, so I grabbed the girls and left.

Caleigh jumped in the front seat, as Brooke and Lucy found a place in the back. I could feel the tension between Caleigh and Brooke.


	16. Break Room Battles

a/n: sorry it took so long for the stupid update. I'm a loser, I know. I slept in one day, and when I woke up, I was grounded. Once again, sorry for the delay.

* * *

**Caleigh's POV:**

"So, I take it you and Brooke are still avoiding each other." Sara said when we entered her apartment.

"Like the plague, baby," I replied, as I headed to take a shower.

I only had two more weeks left of the internship, and the thought of going back home was starting to depress me. The last couple of nights had been uneventful, since Grissom hadn't let Sara back into the field. Tonight was our night off, and we were content to spend it relaxing on the couch, eating ice cream, and talking. We touched a little on the subject of Lucy and Greg. Both of us agreed that it probably wouldn't last, since Lucy would be gone soon.

"I'm kind of hoping that she'll go out with this guy named, Brody, once we get back," I said.

"Why's that?" Sara asked me.

"Well, the guy's had a huge crush on her ever since she asked him to change the oil in her car." I replied.

"How long ago was that?" she wondered.

"The second day of school two years ago. Freshmen year. A year I will never forget," I laughed as memories of my first year at George Fox University flooded my mind. "I think the best time I had that year was when Lucy and my friends Ryan, Tricia and Jason took me to Lloyd Center in Portland and taught me how to ice skate."

"That sounds like a lot of fun." Sara said.

"It was," I answered, "but I was really sore for a couple days after that."

* * *

Time was flying by; the day I left Las Vegas for Newberg was fast approaching, only one more week left. Sara and I had both reached our boiling points at the lab. If it wasn't Lucy crying over Greg, it was me, trying to avoid Brooke. Sara and I seldom saw the inside of her apartment that week, there were so many cases, that the day shift was giving us a hand. 

Sara's pager buzzed. "Caleigh, Hodges finally has the results in. Go grab them."

"Okay," I replied.

It didn't take very long to get back with the results. I handed them over to Sara. She glanced them over. "Looks like our vic was high," she noted, before turning back to the evidence she was examining.

"That's not surprising considering the stash you found under the passenger seat," I answered. "Maybe our vic was a dealer."

"Wouldn't surprise me," she retorted.

* * *

I was in the break room, making coffee for Sara and myself, when Brooke finally managed to corner me. 

"Caleigh, I'm really sorry about calling you a no-good orphan," she whispered to me.

"Whatever, Brooke," I snapped.

"No, really, I am," she was almost pleading.

"From the mouth flows the heart," I replied.

"What's that supposed to mean," she asked, irritated.

"It means that what you said to me is what you believe in your heart," I maneuvered around her, holding the coffee cups, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got stuff to do."

Brooke quickly stepped in front of me, "You're not leaving this room until we resolve this," she yelled.

"Resolve what? You being a total jerk?" I yelled back. Of course, at that moment, our screams reached the ears of our supervisor and he came running in.

"What is going on in here?" Grissom asked, obviously ticked.

"Nothing," I replied as I stepped past Brooke into the hallway, "Absolutely nothing."


	17. Letters

Sara,

It was great to hear from you. These first couple weeks have been hectic. I'm pretty satisfied with my living arrangements, though. My friends Tricia and Ally are sharing an apartment on campus with me. I must admit that it feels weird not going to work every night. I'm still working on getting my internal clock back the way it was.

Hey, I have a crazy idea. Why don't you take some time off of work and come to Oregon. You'll love it here. We have the fattest squirrels you'll ever see. My new favorite pastime is chucking acorns at them. It's extremely fun.

Keep on keeping on,

Caleigh

I couldn't help but smile after reading Caleigh's e-mail. The thought of visiting was tempting and I could really use the time off.

Caleigh,

Your crazy idea isn't so crazy at all. Call me and we'll set a date.

Don't get kidnapped,

Sara


	18. Epilogue: Six Years Later

a/n: it's finally over. Sorry that the last few chapters sucked. I had to write them in one day, before summer school finished. Thanks to all of you who put up with me and my delays. You rock hardcore.

* * *

The conversation in the break room of the Las Vegas Crime Lab was lively as everyone waited for the assignments.

"So how did you date go?" Greg asked the woman sitting across from him.

"Fine," she answered back.

"Come on girl, we need details," Warrick said sipping coffee.

"Hey, guys, leave her alone. We shouldn't pry into her life," Nick stated before turning to face the woman she was sitting next to. "So tell me, is he the one?"

"Who's the one?" Catherine asked as she entered.

"I don't know if he is," the woman replied as Sara walked in.

"Are you guys talking about James?" Sara asked. Everyone mumbled something to the effect of yes. Grissom walked in at that moment, carrying a stack of folders.

"Well," Catherine started, "before you marry a guy, you have to make sure that his last name sounds good with your first name."

"That sounds kind of shallow, Cath," Grissom replied.

"I'm going to have to agree with Grissom on this one," Nick commented.

"At this point, I'm really not concerned about his last name sounding good with my name," the woman replied.

"Well you have been dating him for almost a year now," Sara put in.

"Just try it, see how it sounds," Greg nudged.

"Yeah, just try it," Warrick agreed.

"Fine, Caleigh Hudson. Are you guys satisfied now?" Caleigh huffed.

"Caleigh Hudson, I like it," Catherine said. Everyone else mumbled their agreement.

"Alright," Caleigh said, "now that we're all in agreement about my future name, we can get on with assignments."

"Cath, Greg, and Warrick, you're handling a home invasion. Nick, you and I have a break in at a connivance store. Sara and Caleigh, you've got a homicide in Henderson."


End file.
